Rupegia

The Aberrant comes out of our tunnel and "sniffs" the air. Its stone mask displays very little emotion, so I'm assuming that the way it's looking towards the sky means that it's sniffing. Then it lowers its head closer to the ground and starts following our tracks. I can see that its eyes and mouth have stopped glowing.

Hana and Lina stand together in front of the trap with their war hammers at the ready, their bodies strengthened by my [Godly Language]; the rest of the girls and I are on our horses, hidden behind a giant tree; and the Dragonoids stay behind the two vanguards at the front, a small distance away from them, hidden behind a large root.

It takes little time for the monster to reach us, so I unsummon Holly and recharge my MP a bit with [Redirect Mana].

We don't have our [Spirit Lights] out, so we can only see a brown outline move out from behind a root as it briefly passes through a small streak of light that leaked down from the canopy. The monster is completely silent, even though it's huge. A few seconds after it appears, it finally notices us and immediately freezes on the spot, becoming as still as a statue.

The odd, stone-skinned monster barely looks out of place as it's dark brown color blends in well with the roots around it.

"He doesn't look tasty," Aoi says through [Bind].

"Wait until you see his insides," I say.

We spend a tense minute just staring at each other, if you could say that a lifeless stone mask can even "stare" at anything, that is. Then, suddenly, the eyes and mouth of the Aberrant light up again and lightning crackles along its body. The next moment, it charges forward at a frightening speed while stomping along ground.

Hana and Lina get ready and I see the earth rising around Lina's feet. They cast [Spirit Light] and we finally see the whole of the monster.

It reaches the trap, and a few steps in, it suddenly starts to try to stop itself. It slips and writhes in the air as the ground crumbles underneath its claws. It falls down a dozen meters into the hole we created and splashes into the mud below.

Alissa stays behind while I, Ciel, and Roxanne gallop forward.

"[Torrent]!"

"[Wind Hammer]!"

I visualize the wall around the hole. We didn't dig a hole, we compacted earth so that it would create an opening in the ground.

"[Earth Wall]!" I cast the spell and pull on the compacted earth, then I let it crumble on top of the monster.

The Destruction Dragonoid dives into the hole and latches onto the back of the struggling monster. Black light glows out of his body as he works on weakening the stone scales.

The Aberrant desperately claws its way upwards. When it reaches the edge near us, Hana and Lina strike its claws, breaking them. The monster falls back into the mud and crushes the Destruction Dragonoid, but that doesn't kill him.

The stone mask turns to Hana and she only has enough time to hide behind her shield. Without a sound and with blinding speed, a large block of stone shoots out of its mouth and penetrates both Hana's [Wind Armor] and her [Wind Shield]. In one moment she's there, then in the next she's spinning as she's hurled high into the air. She goes so far up that she flies past the crown of the gigantic trees.

I only stop for a moment as the reality of what just happened dawns on us.

"RUN AWAY!" I bellow with all my power. "LINA!" I extend my hand to her and she runs to me.

The hole glows and lightning flies out of it, hitting Lina in the back. Her [Rainbow Shield] flashes and her skin glows in a rainbow color as the lightning courses through her body. Not even the emellanat lining of her shield is enough to stop the magic. Faint burn marks appear along her skin as she yells in pain. A moment later the lightning runs out and she collapses.

I spur my horse towards her and use [Telekinesis] to lift her up from the ground. Then the long limbs of the Aberrant slam on the ground as it hangs at the edge of the hole. Its head peeks over the edge and turns to me.

Aoi fires a fireball at its mouth, to no noticeable effect; Ciel fires an [Air Hammer] at the face of the Aberrant and it only flinches a little; the metal-clad Dragonoid slams on top of its head and forces it to look down. The monster fires a block of stone into the edge of the hole, causing a loud and dull sound that makes the earth tremble, and dirt and dust flies everywhere.

The Destruction Dragonoid regenerates enough to escape the mud and attacks the Aberrant along with the Metal one, forcing it back down into the hole. Both of them wrestle with the monster, but they get quickly grabbed and buried in the mud by the monster's back claws. Its hind legs are as dexterous as its forelegs.

I pull Lina onto my lap and gallop away. She slowly wakes up and groans in pain. Ciel pairs her horse with mine and instantly [Heal]s Lina. The burn marks disappear and her mind immediately regains clarity.

The Aberrant hangs on the edge of the hole again and looks at us. Its stone mask looks "melted" and distorted.

"[EXPLOSION]!"

With incredible speed, the head of the Aberrant moves to the side and nearly completely evades Roxanne's spell. The mask cracks and the cheek of the monster loses its scales, exposing red and bleeding flesh.

Hana dives down like an arrow towards the Aberrant. The monster looks up at her and lighting courses through its body. One clawless paw swipes at Hana as she rapidly enters his reach, but she dodges perfectly with only a flap of her wings.

Her war hammer slams perfectly on the crack of the mask and splits it in two horizontally. The upper part peels off with a layer of skin stuck to it and reveals the glowing eyes of the monster. Its skull is flat and it has no nose on its face.

"[EXPLOSION]!"

Even while suffering from the wound on its head, it dodges Roxanne's spell again and only suffers minor damage.

This provides just enough time for Hana to strike again at the back of its head and for Ciel to fire a [Wind Hammer] at its face. The skull caves in slightly and the Dragonoids escape its claws. It remains dizzy for a second and Alissa fires an arrow, which pierces an eye and I immediately feel lots of mana leaving its body.

"HANA, COME BACK!" I yell.

Lightning explodes out of it in all directions. It fries the Dragonoids and Hana is hit in the back. She crashes down onto the ground near us but immediately rises again.

I unsummon the Dragonoids before they die and open up a [Gate] behind a tree.

"GET IN!" I order.

In only a few seconds all of the girls cross my [Gate], with Hana as the last one in. I cast [Summon Small Bird] and order it to stalk the Aberrant, then I enter the [Gate] and we take a few moments to rest.

 

"Fuck! That was horrible!" Hana exclaims while Ciel heals her broken arm and burned skin. I heal Lina to make sure there's no residual damage in her body.

"It's faster than my spell," Roxanne says with a deep frown.

"Is its brain even inside its skull? I hit the eye and nothing happened besides it getting angry," Alissa says.

Aoi hangs her head low and through the [Bind], I can hear her grumbling.

"It's regenerating," I say.

"That's fucking stupid!" Hana protests and raises her arms. Ciel sends a glare to her because she's trying to [Diagnose] her arm for any side-effect.

"It's slow, but it's regenerating. The skin is regrowing at a noticeable rate."

Ciel finishes her inspection and sighs. "We need a new plan."

We are too close to the road. The Aberrant might attack the caravan if it gets too close.

"Alissa, go back to the caravan and tell them to stop. I'll just send a small bird with you for scouting. I need more mana, so I'm unsummoning the light elemental and the Holly."

She nods and gallops away. I share my senses with her so she can participate in the discussion.

"If it's using regeneration, won't its mana run low, like the Dragonoids' did?" Lina asks.

"I couldn't use [Sense Soul] on it but it could work. To confirm this, I just have to stay close long enough," I say.

"I do not like that idea," Alissa says.

"I can always use [Gate] to escape."

"If we confirm this then we can use sneak attacks to wear it down," Ciel says.

"Hmph. Fine," Alissa relents.

"That is, if it doesn't have a skill like [Redirect Mana]," Roxanne says with a wry smile.

"That would be too much," Hana says.

I drink a delicious MP potion and flop down on the soft earth.

"We need fast and heavy blunt attacks to break its scales and bones. Pure magic seems to have little effect on it since it withstood the Watchful Tons' fog like it was nothing. The Destruction Dragonoid seems to work but it needs time for it to take effect and the Aberrant reacts too quickly," I think out loud.

"Can you use the golems to help? Throw some of your boulders at it?" Lina asks.

"Yes! [Telekinesis] is cheaper than [Earth Bullet], so we can throw lots of them!" Roxanne exclaims.

I nod in agreement and say, "Right, I'll spread [Gate] 'coordinates' around while you girls collect lots of boulders. But first, I'll use [Ignorance] and sneak up close to the Aberrant so I can inspect its mana."

Hana's shield is bent, the enchantment is damaged but not unusable, only its coverage was warped. Lina can fix it completely, though it will take a while.

I put my points just like the same way I did when I stalked Farana. Though this time I don't put more than ten points in skills that I know nothing about, like [Sense Presence] and [Hide Presence], so I don't feel as "heavy" as last time. I think I was "overtaxing" my soul with those skills. They require some very odd knowledge and experiences so they shouldn't be as easy to "force" into my soul as magic skills are.

I also take off my scale armor so that its jingling can't alert the monster. I feel a little naked without my armor, but [Gate] gives me the confidence that I need to continue.

 

Through the summoned bird's eye, I see that the Aberrant is still searching around the area where I used [Gate], so I calmly make my way towards it. With [Sense Presence], I can easily avoid any monster I encounter along the way.

Alissa warns Rande of our situation and the commoners grow distressed when I unsummon the light elemental. Klein shows a lot of worry and fidgets for a while.

The rest of the girls work diligently and even Aoi helps gather boulders with her small [Item Box]. The golems are very helpful with raising the stones, they acquired a lot of control over [Telekinesis] thanks to Roxanne's guidance, though they still haven't gained any skills.

Long, silent minutes pass as I make my way through the almost completely dark forest. It's only when I'm alone that I realize how small I feel among the giant trees. The small streaks of light that pass down through the leaves help the weak, luminous plants brighten the landscape, but there are still so many dark places that the forest looks frightening and dangerous.

[Sense Presence] gives me some rationality about the darkness. I can always be sure that there's likely nothing in there. In this forest, there are a few monsters that can hide from [Sense Presence], but they're nowhere near as dangerous as the Symbol of Darkness.

 

When I finally reached the Aberrant, it's starting to slowly make its way towards the fog again, probably hunting for the last Watchful Ton that might still be in there. The fog is very faint now, but it might still affect me, so I hurry closer to the monster.

I see that its steps are incredibly dexterous. Its legs move normally until it nearly reaches the ground, then it slows down instantly so that it can softly and soundlessly touch the ground.

I avoid the light and make my way towards the monster, careful to not touch any dry branches or leaves. Even [Quiet Steps] won't help me with those. I leave a few "coordinates" along the way.

I get close enough and focus on my [Sense Soul]. I don't see the same menu that appears for anyone with a system, but I can still look inside and search for the mana organ. I see many organs that I have no idea what they are for, but eventually, I find a very familiar-looking mana organ.

The familiar slots for mana particles are there. The amount of them is a little frightening; if I were to make a guess, they are as numerous as Roxanne's. Though, I notice most of them are nearly empty.

The monster's face and eye are healed and the skull is not caved in anymore, but the stone scales haven't grown back yet.

"The monster is nearly out of mana. We co-…"

The monster suddenly turns around and looks directly at me.

The earth explodes and my heart beats uncontrollably. The scare was so great that I reflexively cast [Gate] and closed it immediately after, which was the correct choice as the next moment, a large block of stone filled the location where I just was.

I collapse on the ground and try to gather myself.

"Wolfy?!"

"I'm okay. The monster sensed our communication, I think."

"That's concerning."

 

I store all the boulders inside my "Items" and we prepare ourselves again for the fight.

"Focus on controlling mana," I say in the [Godly Language] and open a [Gate] near the monster.

I summon another small bird and have it chirp loudly somewhere that we have a clear shot of. A minute later, the Aberrant sneaks close, wary of another trap. We calmly charge our [Telekinesis], my [Godly Language] helps with controlling the power and I put everyone's skill points into [Mana Efficiency].

Suddenly, lightning crackles along its body and it rushes towards the bird. He reaches it in an instant and stomps on it.

"FIRE!"

The monster looks at us but it's too late, our boulders are already in flight and the [Gate] is closed. The boulders hit all over its body and more of its scales crack.

"FIRE!"

Boulders fly from another direction and hit the other side.

"FIRE!"

Boulders hit from a third direction and the monster turns towards whence it came.

"NO. YOU. WON'T!" Hana strikes at a joint of its shoulder and the monster winces.

"[EXPLOSION]!" Roxanne aims for the body and the monster evades, but not as much as before because its body is much more massive than its head. The stone scales at the left flank are blown away along with a small chunk of the ribs.

Ciel fires a [Wind Blade], Lina fires an [Earth Bullet], and Alissa fires an arrow at the exposed flank.

"NUOOOOH!" The monster groans in pain for the first time.

I summon a minotaur and another Destruction Dragonoid and command in [Godly Language], "Become Stronger!" Both of my summons bulk up in strength. "Hold it still!" I order, and they charge forward with Lina following close behind them.

Hana goes for another strike and hits the other shoulder. The Aberrant's tail tries to lash out at her, but her [Enhanced Reflexes] allow her to dodge the attack.

I open a [Gate] to the first position again and we fire another volley of boulders.

"[Explosion]!" Roxanne opens a wound on its right flank.

The minotaur hugs the left hind leg and holds it to the ground; the Destruction Dragonoid weakens the joint at the left shoulder; Lina strikes the left hip of the Aberrant with the aid of [Spirit of Gaia].

Suddenly, the monster turns into a Tesla coil again, but this time it's so weak that Lina's emellanat shield protects her from any damage and my summons are only slightly fried.

Hana flies up once more and strikes the left shoulder, then Lina strikes the left hip again and monster buckles. It's left limbs are now too weakened to support its body.

"FIRE!" We launch another volley at the right flank and the monster trembles in pain.

"[EXPLOSION]!" This time, Roxanne aims at the base of the neck and its head separates from its shoulders. The monster stops struggling and goes limp.

A few seconds later Alissa calls out, "It's dead!"

"FUCK YEAH!" Hana yells and lands on the ground.

We cheer and Roxanne jumps on me. She gives me a tight hug and Ciel gives me one from behind. Aoi has to quickly jump off of my shoulder to not get crushed by them. If not for their armor, I would be drowning in breasts right now.

Alissa turns into a fox and comes running, and Hana brings Lina to us, then we all have a group hug. The golems waddle closer and hug our legs, too.

 

We disentangle after having our fill and nearly making me pass out. I recover the body and the head, then we slowly make our way back to the caravan. We are all rather tired physically, magically, and mentally.

I unsummon the minotaur; summon an Arachne and send it along with the Dragonoid to deal with the last Watchful Ton; and summon two scouting Hollys and a light elemental, who dances as we walk, to accompany us.

When we reach the caravan, we see the commoners preparing a few orcs that Anton and the others killed. One of the orcs is already partially cooked, the handiwork of Rande.

"Ah, Helios!" Rande greets us with a dashing smile and Klein and Osaria sigh in relief. "By your faces, I can tell that the hunt was successful."

"Indeed it was. Damned Aberrant was the toughest thing I have fought yet," I say with a dashing smile of my own.

I pull out the Aberrant for everyone to gawk at.

"The damn thing is beaten, alright," Anton says with a snort.

"It looks as resistant as an imperial wall," says one of the soldiers that's been friendly with Hana and Ciel.

"How did you inflict such wounds?" Rudito asks as he inspects the hole at the left flank.

Roxanne smiles smugly and says, "That's my secret."

Rudito chuckles and doesn't prod any further.

"Are you okay? Wasn't this shield enchanted with [Wind Shield]?" Klein asks, tenderly grabbing Hana's arm.

"Yeah, it was. Still is, actually. But anyway, that Aberrant threw a square rock at me that went through the enchantment, broke my arm, and sent me flying up past the treetops," Hana answers.

"It shocked me so hard that my skin burned and I passed out," Lina says.

"Oh…" Osaria looks at us with a heart-wrenching sad frown. It makes me and Roxanne feel sad for making her worry.

"One thing we have to be thankful for is for having these two," Ciel says and props up the two golems, trying to change the mood. They stand still on top of Ciel's palms and scan the audience. "They are Wolf's golems and they were immensely helpful in taking out the monster today."

"Golems?" The commoners question and look at the two dolls curiously. Ciel whispers something and the duo of golems wave cutely towards the commoners. Most women, children, and some of the men squeak at their cuteness.

The exhibition starts to get a bit noisy, so I store the Aberrant's corpse away and Rande starts to organize the soldiers again.

"We've waited long enough! We'll be moving at a faster march!" Rande yells.

We mount our horses again and start moving on. Soon, the Arachne and the Dragonoid kill the last Ton and the fog dissipates quickly, finally clearing the road ahead for us to continue travelling.

 

Intermission 14

 

I hear a knock on the door.

"Come in," I say.

Sebastian enters and deposits a sealed letter on our desk. The signet catches my attention, so I immediately open it and we three huddle up to read it.

"Seems too perfect to be true," says Luz.

"He's not even certain how they did it," says Lua.

"Not even a hint of the type of magic used, aside from the sleeping one."

"Still, their powers are just what we need," I say.

"We will have to test them," says Luz.

"All of them?" Lua asks.

"Only the boy, it's obvious that he's the one hiding his powers," I say.

"We don't know of his background. Are you sure he's reliable?" Luz questions.

"A lot can be ascertained simply from looking at those around him."

"Well, he does seem 'apt' for this," Lua says with a smirk.

"Sebastian, keep a close watch on him. Mark him as the first choice," I say.

The servant nods and silently takes his leave.

"Hm, he's coming right towards us," Luz says.

"We'd better make use of this opportunity," I say with a grin.

Helios sounds like an Imperial name, but you don't really seem to be one, Wolf.